Zaber
by Lion warrior
Summary: Po has a sword that brings back a lot of memories, and the others are trying to figure why he's so protective of it. Review
1. Chapter 1

Zaber

**Don't own Kung Fu Panda**

* * *

Po and the Furious Five were training in the Training Hall with Master Shifu...and as usual, Po would mess up. He landed face first rear end up into the ground. "That's enough. I think we can retire for today," Shifu said dismissing the students. Po rubbed his head as Monkey helped him up.

"Well, Po, you've managed to get defeated once again. There are times I wonder if you're actually trying," Tigress smirked.

"Tigress," Viper scolded, "He just tripped. A simple mistake. No need to beat him over the head with it."

"But you got to admit, it was funny how you fell," Monkey snickered.

"Everything is funny with you, Monkey," Crane remarked.

"It's okay guys. I...guess I was just distracted by something else," Po said thoughtfully, "Well, I'm starving." The others groaned. In the kitchen, Po was gulping down his bean buns. Mantis just stood there amazed.

"Do you ever get tired of eating that much?" he asked.

"Not really," Po replied.

"Well, I guess for him, he had nothing better to do as a child," Tigress added. Everyone laughed as Po lightly chuckled...and sadly.

* * *

Meanwhile, Mr. Ping was in the shop, making noodle soup. Suddenly, a scream was heard from one of the customers. He looked to see that wolf bandits were robbing the shop. He sighed. It had become a regular occurrence. Mr. Ping went out to face them. One of the wolves picked him up and said, "Give us your loot."

"All the money is in the right drawer underneath the stove," Mr. Ping said calmly. He knew that most of the money was already in the bank. So this was his 'in case thieves came' money. Po would get the money back anyways, so it didn't bother him as much. Two of the wolves went in the kitchen to get the money. One of them stumble upon a loose stone in the floor. He picked it up and it revealed a well wrapped and expensive looking katana.

"Hey boss, look what we found," He said. The moment Mr. Ping saw that katana, he went into a frenzy.

"PUT THAT DOWN!" Mr. Ping shouted knocking out of the boss wolf's hands. Mr. Ping threw a knife had in his pocket at the wolf holding the katana. The knife knocked the wolf back to the wall, pinning him down. Mr. Ping got to the kitchen where he had a cabin of knives. He flipped over and threw the knives, pinning all the wolves to the walls. All the customers ran when they saw that. Mr. Ping snatched the katana out of the wolves "Never come here again. Got it?!" The wolves nodded. They scampered out the door. Mr. Ping twirled around the knife in his hand and sat down, waiting for Po to come.

* * *

Zeng came rushing in to the kitchen, out of breath as usual. "Dragon Warrior, your father was just robbed by wolf bandits," he panted.

"Well, this may help you get your mind off of how badly you're fighting lately," Tigress teased. Po shook his head.

"Tigress, don't you think that's enough?" Crane said, "This is his father we're talking about."

"The bandits left when your father went into a frenzy with the knives," Zeng said. Po and the other looked confused.

"Why would he do that?" Po asked.

"Because one of the wolves tried to take a katana they found at the shop," Zeng said barely getting past the last word. Po grabbed him, lifted him up by the collar and shouted.

"Where is he?!" He seriously said. Zeng was now scared.

"Hhhhe's at the shop waiting for you," Zeng panicked. Po dropped him and went out the door. The other were increasingly confused and shocked. They went down the mountain behind Po. When Po got to the shop, Mr. Ping was still twirling the knife through his fingers.

"Dad," Po said running up to hug him, relieved.

"It's good to see that you're here. Here," Mr. Ping presented the sword just as the others came into the store. "They only touched it." Po grabbed the sword and gently caressed it.

"Good," Po said. Then he smirked a little, "You know, you didn't have to do your old knife throwing thing to the bandits."

"Did you want them to steal it?" Mr. Ping asked rhetorically, then he saw that the others were there. "Why did you bring them here?" Po turned around to see the Furious Five there.

"What are you doing here?" Po asked.

"We thought that you would need some help," Tigress said not trying to be insulting. Po glared.

"Thanks, but I think I can take care of myself. But why would I should I bother you considering I have been the right type of warrior lately," Po said bitterly. Viper whispered to Tigress.

"You shouldn't have taunted him," she said.

"Anyways, what is the fuss about the sword?" Monkey said about to touch it when Po pulled out of his reach.

"It's a personal family heirloom. It's from Japan. That's all you need to know," Po replied. Tigress looked at the sword.

"Isn't that a samurai sword? What was your family doing with that?" Tigress asked. Po was silent for a second before answering.

"There are certain things that everyone keeps secrets. There are personal things that you guys each have that you would never tell me. Now, there are personal things that I would never tell you, and you must respect that," Po replied, "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go somewhere." He went out with the katana in hand. The others were both surprised and saddened.

"I don't understand. What's with the sword Mr. Ping?" Mantis asked. Mr. Ping shook his head.

"Don't expect me to spill out the beans. Like Po said, there are things that are personal," He said.

"So how did you defend against the bandits?" Tigress asked.

"I use to be a knife thrower when I was a child and I ran away with the circus for a while," Mr. Ping said. "In any case, that sword is the reason why he's so out of sorts. Today is the day he," He stopped when he remembered the others were still there. "I'm sorry. I was rabbling on. Well, you probably have something to do or more important business to do. Good-bye." He went into his shop and went back to work. The Furious Five could agree on one thing. Something was up with Po.

**to be continued**


	2. The Good Old Days

The Good Old Days

* * *

**About a couple of years ago in Japan**

The outside corridors were lined with Japanese Cherry Blossom trees. The Grand Palace decorated in blood red with golden markings and drawings. Guarded by hundreds of boar guards with heavy armor on. In the throne room of this magnificent palace resided the very emperor of Japan, Emperor Bao-Ai. The throne room was packed with his subjects to celebrate his jubilee. It was his 45th birthday and the country was here to celebrate. He was a big Japanese Wolf with brown fur and gray beady eyes. Sitting right beside him was his adopted princess, Mei. She was a dark orangish small cat about 16 years old. Her yellow eyes sparkled when she smiled. She stood at about 5'7" and had a beautiful blue dress on. Then the announcer came. He was an average duck with a green vest on.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure that I present to you the powerful and mighty Emperor Bao-Ai himself. His all mighty power stands to no one and-" He went on and on and the Emperor whispered to Mei.

"Old windbag." Mei chuckled. It took about a good minute for the announcer to finish.

"And now I present to you the sons of the mighty Emperor Bao-Ai. First, Prince Lee, who has just finished conquering the western rival village and has establish the new treasure city. He has-"

"Alright, we get it," Lee interrupted. Lee was the complete replica of his father. He stood at about 5'9" looking just like his father. His eyes, though, were friendly and inviting. Though his father is kind, his big muscular appearance does intimidate. He is the only blood son of Bao-Ai. He was also the same age as Mei. Lee bowed before his father.

"Ah, Lee. What have you brought for your old man?" Bao-Ai asked.

"Good Morning, Abba. Hi, Mei," Lee said blushing at her. Mei blushed too, "It is with great pride that I give to you a new samurai sword from the conquered Western Japanese. They have incredible use in fine materials and metals. Now Abba, we have completely united Japan." Bao-Ai smiled widely at his son. He rested his hand on his son's shoulder.

"You've made me proud, Lee," he said. Lee just bowed as he stood besides his father with two swords by his sides.

"And now, the second son of the all powerful mighty, his royal excellence, Emperor Bao-Ai, please welcome the adopted and cherished son of the Emperor, brother of Lee, prince of Japan, defender from the horrible Jin-Min, friend to-"

"JUST GET ON WITH IT!" the entire room shouted. Old Windbag recovered.

"Please welcome, the legendary, Prince Po," He finished. A roaring round of applause came as a 15 year old panda strode through with a yellow robe on with a brown katana case by his side. He strode and bowed before the emperor.

"Po, my son. What have you brought for an old man?" Bao-Ai asked cheerfully.

"Probably better than my gift as usual," Lee smirked at the panda. Po shook his head.

"Other than my recent battle with the Jin-Min, I only have one gift," He said as he presented a sword to the emperor. "I made it in the blacksmith shop myself." It shine greatly in the light with markings in sword. 'to the Great Emperor Bao-Ai' Emperor Bao-Ai smiled as Lee rolled his eyes.

"Told you. Better than mine," He said.

"Nonsense Lee, both of your gifts are beautiful. It is a marvelous samurai sword my son. I will cherish it always," Bao-Ai said. Then he looked at both Lee and Mei. The three's eyes darted each way at each other.

"Um...am I missing something here?" Po asked seeing their weird eye movement.

"Well, give it to him," The Emperor said.

"Give me what?" Po asked unsure.

"Well, today accounts three years since you ran away from home and came here on Abba's birthday. So, to show our appreciation of you, we give you this," Lee said presenting a newly made katana. It's case was decorated black and white like Po's fur. Po pulled out the sword and read the inscriptions on it. 'The legendary Zaber' Po smiled as he bowed. Lee and Mei surprised him when they hugged him. The crowd did a collective 'aw'.

"Thank you so much you guys. I don't know what else to say," Po said in awe. "Thanks."

"You are welcome my brother," Lee smiled, "It's just a shame that we can't test that katana on the Jin-Min yet."

"Those awful, hateful tigers," Mei bitterly muttered. Po corrected her.

"Now Mei, not all of them are like that. They are much like you, stubborn in every way."

"Jin-Min, Jin-Min, it's all I ever hear about," Emperor Bao-Ai exclaimed, "This wouldn't have happened if we just learn to settle our differences on land."

"It's hard to do that when they're swinging swords at us, but they are deadly in their pursuit." Lee said, "Of course, this new legend may pose a threat to us."

"What legend?" Po asked.

"It is said that a warrior will rise up and bring glory and honor to the Jin-Min and end the war," Lee explained.

"Well, that may mean that they will stop their evil ways," Po suggested.

"It's highly unlikely. In any case, the Jin-Min don't seem very hopeful about it. Our spies say that they don't believe in this warrior," Lee replied. Bao-Ai thought for a moment. "Maybe it would be best that I go with Po to help defend the borderlines."

"No, No," Mei said whispering to Bao-Ai. "They might get hurt or worse."

"Like the other times," Bao-Ai reminded, "Your affection for Lee is bizarre beyond me. I love my son but you seem to be the person not to be interesting in him." Mei only blushed. "Well, that won't be necessary boys. We have a strong enough defense line. Anyways, let the celebration begin."

* * *

After the party, Mei, Lee, and Po sat in Abba's luxury chamber room. "That was a good party," Lee said burping a little. Po pondered something.

"Has it really been three years since I ran away?" Po asked.

"Yep, it's amazing how we met. You stole away on a boat going to Japan, wondered around Tokyo, bumped into me, became my friend, and brought you back to the palace," Lee replayed. Po sighed woefully.

"I'll have to be going soon then. I need to make sure that my dad's alright," He said.

"Po, don't speak about that," Mei begged, "The idea of you leaving is like the idea of ripping my heart out." Po gave her an assuring smile.

"Nonetheless Milady, I have to go back. One day, I will have to go," Po spoke gently to her. The cat hugged him.

"Well, I understand. It is your home," Mei said.

"But you are and will always be the best brother a guy could have," Lee said patting Po on the back. Then Bao-Ai came in.

"But enough about your leave. It's time to have some fun," The big wolf smiled. The others laughed into the night.

**to be continued.**


	3. Emperor of Japan

Emperor of Japan

* * *

"So are you going to tell us about the katana, Po?" Mantis pressured. The Furious Five were in the kitchen up the Jade Palace mountain. It had been a week since the team found out about the katana. Po sighed.

"Leave it alone, guys. It's a personal family heirloom. It's dear to me for a reason," Po said. Then Tigress came in. She glared at Po who looked shamefully at the floor.

"You guys are still getting over that fight you had?" Monkey asked snickering.

"Shut it, Monkey!" Tigress and Po exclaimed. The day before, Po had accidentally tripped over Tigress and made her tumble all the way down the stairs into a pot of noodles. Everyone in town laughed about it. So Tigress blamed Po for it. Just then Zeng came in.

"Master Shifu wants you in the Hall of Heroes," He instructed. Soon the team was in the hall. There they saw a familiar prawn.

"Master Yijiro," Tigress said bowing excitedly, "What are you doing here?" She looked over with an evil smirk to see if Po was jealous. Po saw this and rolled his eyes.

"It is great to see you all, especially you Master Tigress. But today, I've only come as a messenger to the Dragon Warrior," Yijiro said. Everyone, including Po, was surprised.

"Who is the message from?" Monkey asked.

"From the very Emperor of Japan," The prawn replied. Po's face immediately paled as Yijiro unfurled a scroll. "He says that he's coming to meet the Dragon Warrior in person. He's heard so many things about him that he wants to finally greet him. This is a grand honor, Po-san. The Emperor of Japan is the greatest Samurai ever."

"I know," Po muttered.

"You don't seemed excited as you usually do," Viper said worried.

"Well the thing is...I ...have to...go to...the...market outside of the valley and it's a two day journey," Po fibbed gradually making his way to the door.

"Um...actually it says here if you leave the valley, that you will be killed," Yijiro said as everyone gasped. Po flinched when he heard that.

"Abba _would _ put that in there," Po muttered lowly.

"What?" Tigress asked.

"Nothing. Um...how about this? You tell the Emperor to meet me here. Knowing him, he's probably right behind you so," Po said dashing out the door. Everyone looked confusedly at each other. About an hour later, they heard trumpets signaling the arrival of the Emperor. A certain duck was at the top to announce him.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jade Palace, it is with great honor that I present to you the powerful, mag-"

"SHUT UP YOU OLD WINDBAG! Shouted the couple coming up the stairs. Strangely, the Emperor didn't dress in fine clothing. Just regular clothes, so did his wife. Another strange thing was that he was a 6'1" wolf and was married to a 5'9" cat.

"Hello, I am Emperor Lee of Japan. It is great to see the Masters of the Jade Palace," Lee said.

"It's a grand honor that the Emperor of Japan graces us with his presence," Master Shifu and the others bowed low to the ground.

"Oh, please stop with the pleasantries," Lee replied.

"Where's the panda?" The cat asked.

"And you are my queen?" Shifu asked.

"She is Queen Mei. Now um...where is the Dragon Warrior?" Lee asked impatiently. Shifu and the others looked at each other with nervousness.

"My Excellence, maybe you would like to see the Jade Palace before you meet the Dragon War-"

"Where is Po?!" Lee and Mei questioned impatiently. Everyone was shocked.

"How do you know his name, your Majesty?" Tigress wondered. The wolf and cat looked at each other.

"We...know...many things about the panda that you probably don't. Now where is he?" Lee nearly growled.

"He's at his father shop, making noodles," Master Shifu explained.

"Down at old Ping's. Come on Mei, we can catch him by surprise," Lee said as they both rushed down the mountain. The Furious Five, Yijiro, and Shifu stared at each other very confused. What did Po have to do with the Emperor of Japan?

* * *

Meanwhile, Po was serving another bowl of noodles to table five. Then two new people came in. "Welcome to Mr. Ping's noodle shop. What would you like?"

"I would like a panda that I had in my childhood to actually greet me and tell me how he's doing," the hooded man said. Po was confused.

"I don't think we have that on the menu," Po replied.

"Zing-Zing," The hooded man said as he took off his hood, "It's me, Lee." Po gasped as he hugged his long lost brother. Mei took off her hood, too.

"Mei! It's so good to see you guys," Po greeted, giving them both a well deserved hug. "So you guys must be here with Abba?" Lee and Mei looked sadly at each other.

"Po, um...Abba's dead," Lee lamented. Po sat in shock. He shook his head sadly putting it in his hands.

"I should have been there," Po cried. Mei petted him on the back.

"You didn't know. There was nothing you could do. He had a complication with his heart. No one saw it coming," Mei explained.

"But I should have been there. I shouldn't have come back," Po blamed himself, then he realized something, "So wait. Who's the new Emperor?"

"I am," Lee said as if it were a dumb question. Po's eyes popped opened.

"So that means that you and Mei are...HA! Our old man owes me big time," Po said.

"What do you mean?" Lee asked.

"Well, the only reason why father was against you falling in love with Mei was because he didn't want to lose a bet we made," Po explained.

"You mean that our Abba gave me so much grief about that because he didn't want to lose a stupid bet!" Lee said angrily.

"Oh come on, it was funny," Po said. Lee rubbed his head in frustration. Mei smiled as she grabbed Lee's arm.

"It's alright, Lee. On the bright side, we're finally together. But Po, we're going to have to explain to the others how you know us," Mei stated. Po got up, went to the kitchen, and retrieved the katana that was stolen. It was the exact same sword that Bao-Ai gave him on his 45th birthday party.

"You still kept it," Lee said slightly amazed.

"It was the only thing that I had left to remember you guys by," Po said thoughtfully. Mei and Lee hugged the panda as they came up the mountain.

**to be continued**


	4. The Truth

The Truth

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen of the-"

"Shut it Windbag!" The three shouted at the duck.

"I'm surprised he's still around and not Abba. And I'm surprised he's not killed yet," Po said smirking.

"Oh we tried," Lee said rubbing his head, "We tried poison, threats, mobs, and everything. He just won't die." Lee joked. "Even on Abba's death bed when he was giving the final words, he rambled on and Abba said, 'Old Wingbag. I'll wring your neck in the afterlife'." Po laughed.

"That's Abba for you. Always staying in character," Po said.

"Presenting Emperor Lee, Empress Mei, and Prince Po," Wingbag said shocking everyone including Yijiro.

"Prince?!" They exclaimed. Po rubbed the back of his head in nervousness.

"Yeah well, I'll explain over lunch," Po said.

"Good, because I'm starved," Lee said going to the kitchen.

* * *

"Well, when I was a little child, I was picked on so much that I wanted get away from it all. So when I was 12 years old, I stole away on a ship going to Japan, and went there. When I got on shore of Japan, I walked a long way to Tokyo. I was cold, lost, hungry, and sleeping in the dumps. Then I bumped into Lee when he was being held up by bandits. I ran in to help him. I...ended up being beat down too by the bandits, but it was enough time for Lee to get his sword and defeat the bandits," Po explained.

"Well, after we ran off the bandits, I brought Po back to the palace to treat his wounds. The reason I was there was because I usually disguise myself as a commoner from time to time to be normal. Anyways, when my father saw him and I explained his situation, he decided to keep Po here for a while. In that time, Po showed an interest in the ways of the samurai. So Bao-Ai started to train him along with me. About a month later, Mei came in from China as a gift from the Emperor of China. At first, Mei was completely stubborn against everyone in the palace. She took a special dislike to me. She even told us that she would kill me and roast the panda!" Lee exclaimed half-laughing.

"I said I was sorry," Mei said innocently.

"Anyways, Mei started to warm up to Po first. Po was the glue to help me actually like Mei. I use to absolutely hate her! No offense, honey," Lee said defensively hugged Mei, hoping she wouldn't kill him.

"I'm sorry. Not to be rude or anything, but how did Po become a samurai?" Monkey said getting back to the story.

"Oh, well, Bao-Ai saw that Po would not follow the old fighting ways, but he came up with new and old ways of swinging the sword. And he became even better than Mei or me," Lee stated. This surprised Yijiro.

"But that's impossible! You are the legendary Emperor Samurais," He exclaimed.

"We weren't always that. We use to be called something else," Lee said. Just then they heard a noise coming from the Hall of Heroes. There they found that Lidong and his croc bandits were stealing the artifacts in the Hall of Heroes. The Furious Five and Shifu were about to take care of it, but Lee stopped them.

"Let the old Samurais deal with this," Lee said throwing Po the sword he had hidden, "You think you still got it." Po took the katana out of its case and swung it around. He smirked.

"I'm ready," Po said confidently. Yijiro gasped in amazement as he read the inscription on the sword.

"Impossible," He exclaimed.

"What is it?" Tigress asked.

"Po is part of the Legendary Trio. You see, Emperor Lee and Mei are legendary fighters but they use to be an ultimate Samurai trio," Yijiro said. Lee grabbed his two dual swords and slashed through the crocs weapons and swords. "Emperor Lee is named the Two-side Samurai because of the dual katanas. The more swords you give him, the more dangerous he is." Mei swung her sword out and used her flexibility to get under and over the crocs. "Empress Mei is named The Lady Samurai because she's the only woman samurai. But then that means that Po is-"

"You aren't getting away that easily," Lidong said about to grab Lee. But Po cut in the way. (hehe puns). Po swung his sword, cutting through his armor. Then he slashed through the crocs with lightning speed. He left a marking in the floor that was the letter first in his name.

"What are you?" Lidong asked bewildered.

"The name is Zaber," Po said as he looked at the big 'z' in the floor, "Now, get out." Lidong fearfully scampered away. Po turned around to a shocked and opened mouth Furious Five, Shifu, and Yijiro.

"You're the legendary Zaber? But how? He disappeared five years ago," Yijiro said.

"Has it really been five years since I last came to Japan?" Po asked Mei.

"Oh five years, two months, six weeks, four days, three hours, 45 minutes, and one, two, three seconds," Mei rattled off, "but who's counting?"

"Hehe," Po laughed it off, "So now that we got that out of the way. Why did you actually come here? I mean you already knew I was here."

"Well, we were here to find you but we were also here to find someone else. The Jin-Min Warrior," Lee replied.

"What's that?" Monkey asked.

"Jin-Min are the rivals of the Japanese empire. They're a...bunch of cats that use to terrorize the Japanese coast. The Jin-Min warrior is a warrior that is prophesied to bring the Jin-Min honor and glory. But, Lee, the Jin-Min warrior is a myth," Po explained.

"That's what we thought, until Abba's spies received word that the Jin-Min warrior was real. That it was actually a baby in the Bao-goo Orphanage. A tiger," Lee said as everyone stared at Tigress, who was completely shocked. Po sighed.

"I know," Po simply replied. Tigress shot her gaze at the panda.

"You mean you knew I was destined to be a villain?" Tigress asked menacingly. Po nodded sadly.

"That and I...actually met your parents when I was investigating the Jin-Min. They were deep in Jin-Min country. The reason I didn't tell you was for your own safety," Po confessed. Tigress's glare grew at Po, but Po didn't flinched. She lunged at him, but the team held her back.

"I HATE YOU, YOU STUPID PANDA. I'LL KILL YOU!" Tigress yelled.

"That's what the prophecy said you would do," Po said woefully. She charged away from the group away to the Training Hall, tearing up. The team glared at Po. "What ever accusations you want to make are probably right. But when you are trying to protect the people near to you, you do anything to protect them from harm, even if it means not telling them truths. That is the way of the Samurai," Po said. Lee patted him on the back, "And what makes it worse is that she already didn't like me today."

"Well, in any case, it's time for damage repair. Come on let's go find your tiger," Lee said as they went after Tigress.

**To Be Continued**

* * *

**You all are mean to the pawn, my word! He's just a creature. This one may cause some conflict among some. Don't worry it gets better.**


	5. Damage Repair

Damage Repair

* * *

Tigress was training with the wooden dummies, crying a little. "Okay," Lee said as Mei, Po, and him stayed out of sight, "Just remember, subtle heart-felt apology. Make it come from the heart."

"But be kind and subtle," Mei reminded. She patted him on the back. "Good luck." Po went into the Training Hall. Once Tigress saw him, her anger started to come back. She furiously continued to punch the dummies.

"What are you doing here panda? Come to try and apologize for what you did? Well, you can try but it won't work," Tigress said sternly. Po was silent for a while. Tigress stopped punching the dummies to see why he was so quiet. "Well?" Po crossed his arms as he had on an emotionless face.

"You know, you have no right to be angry at me for this," Po said blaming her. Mei face-palmed herself. Subtle.

"Bup! He said-"

"I know what he said!" Mei said shutting Lee up. Tigress was thrown off by the accusation and forgot her anger for a while.

"That's not much of an apology," She stated.

"It's not suppose to be," Po said with a stern look.

"You kept the knowledge of my parents away from me, didn't tell me that I am prophesied to destroy Japan, and kept the fact that you're a samurai," Tigress said trying to contain her anger.

"And you are living today!" Po shot back. This made Tigress step back at his outburst. "Do you really think I didn't tell you just because I thought you wouldn't like me. No, I did it so that you would be safe. That's my job as Dragon Warrior and as a samurai. Look, I can live with the fact that you will not see me as a friend, not like you ever did, but as long as you are alive and safe, I can die in peace. I didn't tell you for your own safety, not for my convenience." Po said nearly yelling and with a bout of fury in his voice. Tigress was a tad frightened. This was a side of Po she had never seen in her life.

"But," She started quietly, "But what about the samurai thing?"

"You can blame me for that, but you can't blame me for the other stuff. I'm responsible for everyone, especially my friends, even if they hate me," Po spoke with sternness. Tigress's ears lowered as her eyes looked down to the floor.

"Po I...I don't hate you," Tigress said quietly.

"So what about-"

"I was just angry that my past was kept away from me," Tigress confessed, "I'm...I'm sorry. I've always seen you as a friend." Po surprised her with a hug.

"It's okay." he said as Tigress hugged back, "I could tell you more about your parents if you'd like." Tigress smiled. The panda was back.

"That would be nice. And Po," She said frowning, "I'm sorry for being so mean to-"

"Forget about it, Tigress," Po waved off.

"But I was so mean to you. And that was the same reason you ran away," Tigress reminded him.

"It doesn't matter," Po smiled. Tigress hugged him.

"Thanks Po," She said. Then Mei and Lee came out of their hiding spot.

"You know NOTHING about being subtle, do you?" Mei said with her hands on her hips.

"I've been around tigers long enough to figure out how they'll listen. In her world, that was subtle," Po replied.

"No it wasn't," Tigress corrected.

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" Po said.

"So, what about this Jin-Min Warrior. Am I really prophesied to destroy Japan?" Tigress asked fearing the answer.

"I don't see how," Lee said, "We're at peace with the Jin-Min." This surprised both Tigress and Po.

"But we've been at war with the Jin-Min for years," Po stated.

"Yes, but the leader of the Jin-Min has been killed by a certain cat friend of yours, Tiger," Mei explained. Po's mouth dropped.

"You mean the brother of Tigress is the leader of the Jin-Min now?" Po exclaimed. He covered his mouth when he remembered Tigress was right beside her. "Whoops, did I forget to mention that you had a brother?"

"You did," Tigress glared at him, "But even if that's true, then why be concerned about me?"

"We're more or less here to take you to Tiger. You see, while the Jin-Min are truly our friends now, they have one person that doesn't like the peace," Mei explained.

"Wong-Hu?" Po said knowingly. The dog and cat nodded. "Wong-Hu use to be the general of the Jin-Min."

"But when the peace treaty was signed, he mysteriously disappeared. Now there is an anarchy popping up and Wong-Hu is at the center of it all," Lee explained.

"So what's the plan?" Tigress asked.

"First, we're taking you to Tiger. Then we're going back to Japan where Po will help Mei and I fight Wong-Hu," Lee said. Tigress crossed her arms.

"That sounds good, but what about the others and Master Shifu and Master Yijiro?" She asked.

"The rest of the Furious Five will stay at an guard post to stay as backup. Master Shifu and Master Yijiro will stay here attending to the Jade Palace. We'll have Master Chou here as well," Mei replied.

"I get to finally see where I came from. And more importantly, why I was put here," Tigress said thoughtfully.

"Come on, pack your bags. We're leaving in the morning," Lee instructed.

"Sure thing, Tu-tu!" Po said teasingly. Lee flinched as Mei laughed.

"Who's tu-tu?" Tigress asked Po.

"Well since Lee is the Two-side Samurai, we nicknamed him Tu-tu. Mei has a nickname too: Milady."

"And did you have a nickname?" Tigress asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, since I was Zaber, I was nicknamed: Zing-Zing," Po replied, "Anyways, you better get some sleep. We have a big day tomorrow."

**To be continued.**

* * *

**There! The Prawn's out of the story. HAPPY?**


	6. Leo the Demon Fighter

Leo the Demon Fighter

* * *

"Come on, we have a long journey ahead of us," Lee said. Po, Mei, Tigress, and Lee were now traveling to the Jin-Min territory. Then Lee remembered something, "Oh shoot."

"What's the matter?" They all asked in unison.

"I forgot that Leo lives here and he wanted us to visit him," Lee remembered.

"Who's Leo?" Po asked.

"He's this sweet little...well big rat that we found when we were traveling China. I say big because he's about five feet. Very big for a rat," Mei nodded, "But wait we have Tigress."

"That's why I'm worried," Lee said concerned. Before Po or Tigress could say anything else, they came upon a tent with a grey five foot nine inch rat cooking. "Leo! How's it been? Whacha' you doing?" Lee came in this fake mood. Leo's eyebrows quirked in confusion. "I have a friend for you to meet. She's a bit different, but she's friendly." Slowly Tigress and Po emerged from the bushes. The rat immediately hid behind Lee, frightened.

"Monster!" Leo shouted holding Lee's leg tight. Tigress's ears went down.

"She's not a monster," Po defended her.

"No, that's not what he means. You see, when he was a child, his parents were killed right before him by a tiger," Lee sadly explained.

"Wong-Hu?" Po asked. Lee nodded. Tigress felt sorry for the rat.

"Ever since then he's been afraid of tigers," Lee said, "But this one won't hurt you, Leo. She's friendly...to some."

"Really?" Tigress said in a deadpanned voice.

"We're taking you with us so you're not going to be hurt anymore." Mei explained holding the rat's hand. Leo slowly got up. He nodded.

"Okay. I'll go," He said. He packed his things and headed with them offering his freshly made soup to everyone. Of course, Po had to take Tigress's bowl to her since Leo was still scared of her. Leo didn't talk much. He was always sure that he was a good distance from Tigress, though. This just made Tigress more and more depressed. Night came, and the team rested for the night. Tigress was outside looking at the dull light of the embers in the fire pit.

"You seem depressed. I mean, you're showing it more. What's the matter?" Po asked sitting next to her. She sighed.

"It's just Leo. I-"

"Tigress, his parents were killed. You have to understand his fear," Po interrupted her.

"I do. I completely understand, more than anyone. Po, can I tell you something I'm afraid of and not tell anyone?" Tigress asked. Po nodded. She took a deep breath. "I'm...scared...to see where I come from."

"I thought you were excited," Po said.

"I am but I'm also scared. What if I'm a monster even in my own kind's eye? And what if they're just like me?"

"If they are, then I'm going in there with lots of padding," Po joked earning a playful punch from Tigress, "But Tigress I've been there. The people aren't like you...in character wise. They're okay."

"Then there's Leo. What if all the tigers are like Wong-Hu?" Tigress asked tucking in her legs to her chest.

"They aren't. I know your parents aren't like that," Po smiled. Tigress was silent for a while.

"Po, why did my parents leave me at the Orphanage? Did they not want me?" Tigress asked.

"They wanted you more than ever. In fact, when I asked your mother that, she nearly clawed my eye out. They put you at the orphanage because of the war between the Jin-Min and Japan. They couldn't bear seeing you hurt. It was for your own safety. I...made your mother a promise that I would protect you. And I have."

"I just wish I could be seen as something else than...a monster," Tigress whispered. Unaware of Leo listening from the tent, the two went back to bed.

* * *

"Good morning everyone. Ready for breakfast?" Lee said cheerfully as Leo cooked the breakfast. Tigress sat looking at the grass, thinking about last night. Then her bowl was past to her. She expected Po to be on the other end, but she looked up to see Leo, smiling timidly. She gently grabbed the bowl and slurped it up. She smiled warmly.

"Thank you, Leo," Tigress thanked. Leo quickly bowed and went back to cooking. He was still afraid of her, but it was a start. Once they were on the road, Po asked the question.

"So, how do you know Leo?"

"He's an excellent fighter. They call him, The Fighting Demon," The wolf explained. Po's mouth dropped.

"You mean the legendary fighter that's scares people just by the looks of his fists. Then sends them flying the next minute! Awesome!" Po exclaimed.

"I know, right!" Lee replied equally excited. Mei rolled her eyes as she whispered over to Tigress.

"Boys," She muttered. Both girls laughed.

"So can I see some of your skills, huh can I? Can I? Pleaseeeee?" Po begged. Leo was thrown back by the groveling. Just then, some bandits jumped out of the bushes and ambushed them.

"Give us your loot," They demanded. Leo cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders as he jumped into the air and came down, pounding the bandit into the dirt. His character and attitude changed dramatically. He snarled and growled and laughed madly as he took out the bandits. He slid under one of them and as the bandit looked down, Leo punched him in the face. When the bandits were all defeated, everyone was in awe.

"That...was...AWESOME!" Po said excitedly. Leo returned to his shy manner.

"Funny, he can take out bandits looking like a crazy menace, but he's afraid of tigers," Tigress said to Mei.

"That's not even the kicker. We've never told him this, but he's actually part tiger," Mei said shocking Tigress.

"You're kidding," Tigress said. Mei shook her head.

"That's part of the reason why he's so tall. That and why he has sharp claws and teeth, and when ever he's in his 'demon mode', his eyes move like tiger cat eyes," Mei explained. Tigress took a good look at rat. His eyes were yellow like most cats, and he did have abnormally sharp claws for a rat.

"Wow, he's afraid of what he is. That's tragic," Tigress lamented.

"Come on, guys," Lee said interrupting their private discussion, "Let's get moving."

**to be continued**


	7. The Jin-Min

The Jin-Min

* * *

Attacked four times in three days, the team was down right tired from their journey. They had one more day to go. Soon, they came to a cave that seemed right and suitable. "This will do until we can get some breathe time," Lee sighed plopping down on the hard rock. The others sat as well.

"So, one more day until we get to...our destination," Mei said carefully. But Tigress noticed this.

"You haven't told Leo where we're going yet, have you?" Tigress asked. Leo looked at Mei and Lee questionably. They looked around nervously. Leo looked back at Tigress. She sighed as she said, "We're going to the Jin-Min Territory." Leo's eyes widen in fear as he grabbed a torch and sped down the cave.

"Leo!" Mei yelled after him. Tigress stood up, "Nice going, Tigress. Why did you do that?"

"He deserved to know the truth," Tigress said grabbing a torch, "I'll go talk to him." She said as she went down the dark cave. When she was gone, Mei sighed.

"I can't believe you like her," She muttered to Po. Po blushed when he heard that.

"I don't like like her, like you're implying. She and I can barely sustain a friendship much less a relationship," Po replied.

"Yeah, but we've noticed how much you care about her. To the point you were willing to keep her safety in your hands," Lee pointed out.

"Shut it, tu-tu," Po said irritating Lee while Mei giggled. Meanwhile, Tigress followed the light of Leo's torch into the cave. Leo turned around to see that he was being followed. He tried to walk faster.

"Leo, wait," Tigress said stopping him in his tracks, "Look, I know you are afraid, but you don't have to be. You're a great fighter, you don't have to be afraid. And there's something else you should probably know about." Leo looked at her wanting to know, "You're...actually...half tiger."

"I know," Leo said in a whisper. Tigress was surprised.

"You know? Then why are you so afraid of tigers?" Tigress asked.

"I guess I'm more afraid of my past _with _tigers than with my past without tigers. When I see a tiger, all I can remember is that horrible night. And the worst part is sometimes, since I'm half tiger, I see myself sometimes killing my own parents," Leo said quietly. Tigress laid her hand on his shoulder smiling warmly.

"Don't be afraid. You just have to ignore the past. Trust me. It might actually be fun for you in the Jin-Min territory. Who knows? You may even find a pretty lady you like," Tigress smirked. Leo laughed as they exited out the cave.

* * *

The next day, the team came to the gates of the Jin-Min capital. "Are you ready, Leo and Tigress?" Lee asked. Leo was still scared but Tigress placed a hand on him. He sighed and breathed in. The gates opened and the village was full of people bustling about. The team saw ducks, bunnies, and pigs, but also a lot of crocs, boars, gorillas, and lots of tigers. They were immensely different. Some were fat in the face or gut, some tall and short, others buff or lean. Tigress looked at Leo who didn't seem to be all that scared. The tigers he saw looked friendly and happy. He was still wary of them. Soon the team had to stop at a shop to get some supplies. Then something caught Leo's eye. He saw a bandit dive into an alley. Leo quickly decided to follow.

"Give us your money, honey," said a mean looking wolf bandit. His gang was made of two pigs, one tiger, and what looked like a lizard. Their hostage was a beautiful young tigress with a pink dress. The wolf bandit had her by the throat. Leo, obviously scared of tigers, couldn't help but feel different about this one. He quickly shook it off as he purposefully coughed. He grabbed the attention of the bandits.

"You mind letting her go?" Leo asked. The bandits laughed.

"Why don't you come and get her?" the wolf offered. Leo sighed.

"As you wish. YAAHHH!" He went into his crazed demon mode. Quite quickly, the gang was defeated as they laid across the ground. Leo was looking at his handiwork, not noticing the tigress coming towards him. She hugged him tightly around the torso.

"Thank you so much," She said overjoyed, "I don't know what would happen." Leo's heart rate sped up. He thought he was scared but surprisingly didn't feel scared, just nervous.

"Um...sure," Leo said blushing in the face, "Um sorry, I have to go now. Important business." Leo wiggled out of her arms and ran away. The tigress looked for him, but couldn't find him. Leo ran up back with the group, out of breath.

"What happened?" They all asked.

"Saved...a...tiger...couldn't find you guys...out of breath. Fought bandits," Leo panted out. Tigress was confused.

"But you've fought bandits before. You shouldn't be out of breath," Tigress stated.

"I know. When girl hugged me...heart went faster...had to get out there...Okay, I'm better now," Leo said regaining his breathing. Po and Tigress looked at each other with a sly smile on their faces. Mei and Lee did the same.

"Come on," Lee said dismissing the incident, "We got to get to the palace. We're expected." They got to the palace and went through the big gates. They went into the beautiful throne room where there sat a replica of Tigress. Tiger looked just like Tigress only he was a bit buffer and taller. Tiger looked at his sister with amazement.

"Sister," He said getting up and hugging her, taking Tigress by surprise. She slowly hugged back. He released her. "It must be strange for you to see your family after all these years."

"Really, really strange," Tigress confessed. Tiger chuckled a little.

"Don't worry. Po, Lee, Mei, it's good to see you," Tiger said.

"Good to see you...leader of the Jin-Min?" Po stated a little frustrated, "When were you going to tell me?"

"When you brought my sister back." Tiger stated, "And you are new here. What is your name?" Leo bowed shyly.

"My name is Leo," he said.

"Interesting name," Tiger replied.

"So how's life?" Lee asked.

"Good, good. Especially with my daughter," Tiger answered, "Let me introduce you to her. Miwa," he called. Then a female tiger appeared...in a pink dress.

"Hello, I'm Miwa. My father's told me a lot about you," Then she saw Leo and gasped in excitement, "You're the one who saved me from the bandits!" Everyone was shocked.

"And you're the one I saved?" Leo asked. Miwa nodded, "Of course you are," Leo muttered. Tiger bowed low before him.

"I thank you greatly for saving my daughter. Without you, I wouldn't be able to see this day," Tiger thanked.

"Sure. You're welcome," Leo muttered.

"Why don't we take a tour of the palace, Hmm?" Tiger offered. Miwa grabbed hold of her father's arm.

"Father, is it okay that I show Leo around for myself?" She asked. Tiger was a little unsure but agreed. Miwa then grabbed Leo by the arm. "Come on, I'll show you around," She said excitedly, dragging Leo off. The others just sighed.

"Well, while Leo's doing that, why don't we get to the reason why we are here," Po said getting down to business.

* * *

Miwa brought Leo to their beautiful garden behind the palace. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Miwa smiled. Leo was nervously sweating. "What's the matter? Don't you like it?"

"It's...um...very lovely," Leo said quietly. Miwa smiled wider.

"Come on, we can go to the pond over there," She said dragging Leo again. She dipped her feet into the pond, "Ahh. It's nice and cool," She sighed. She looked over to Leo who was standing up straight and stiff, "What's the matter?"

"Nothing...this...this is always the way I am around a princess," Leo said stuttering. Miwa rolled her eyes.

"You don't need to be so formal. Come on, join me," she offered. Leo slowly took off his shoes and dipped them into the pond. "See doesn't it feel good?" Leo was still quiet. "What's the matter? You've been like this since we've met. Are you okay?"

"Yyyess. Well, you see, I've...been...afraid of...tigers for a long time...so I'm...still trying to cope," Leo said trying not to offend. Too late.

"Oh. So I must be ugly to you then," Miwa said a little offended. How did she conclude that?

"Oh no no no no! You're very beautiful. It's just.."

"Just what?" Miwa asked crossing her arms.

"You see, when I was little I had my parents killed in front of me. By a tiger," Leo looked down. Miwa gasped.

"Oh I'm so sorry. You must hate me then," Miwa said looking down.

"Oh no no no. You're...different and I'm coming to actually like your kind. It's just for you, I get a new feeling around you. It feels like I'm afraid but in a good way. I guess I get nervous around people I like," Leo said covering his mouth at the last part. Miwa gasped.

"You like me?" Miwa asked. Leo slowly nodded. Miwa smiled.

"I like you too," Miwa smiled, "And don't worry. I don't bite. You're just like me. My mother was killed before I knew her well."

"I'm sorry," Leo said quietly. Miwa offered her hand as she stood up.

"Come on, let me show you more of the palace," She smiled. Leo smiled as he slowly took her hand and she practically dragged him.

**to be continued.**


	8. Tigra and Qiang

Tigra and Qiang

* * *

Tiger, Lee, Mei, Po, and Tigress took a tour through the palace. "Um...Tiger, we'll catch up with you in a moment. I want to talk to Tigress," Po said. Tiger nodded then they went on with the tour.

"What's wrong, Po?" Tigress asked concerned that he wanted to talk to her.

"Tigress, back at the Jade Palace when you first heard about your heritage, why were you so angry?" Po asked.

"Wouldn't you be angry if your life was hidden from you?" Tigress questioned back.

"But why that much? You've never even known your past. There was just the orphanage," Po replied.

"What are you really asking, Po?" Tigress asked a little confused.

"Well, if Zeng had told you that he knew your parents, I have to feel that you wouldn't have made the outburst you did with me. I sensed that you were mad at me for something else. Your past was one part, but there was another part. What was it?" Po asked. Tigress was silent for a long time.

"I...I was just upset that my best friend didn't tell me or trust me with the secret of past," Tigress said with a little hurt in her voice.

"Tigress you know that...wait. 'best friend?' You mean one of your friends," Po corrected thinking she had made an honest mistake.

"No, I mean my best friend," Tigress sighed, "Not even Viper has that title." She knew why Po was questioning her. She wasn't the kindest person to Po, but he was always there and no one could convince her otherwise.

"'Best friend'. Hmmm, that's new," Po said.

"It shouldn't," Tigress looked sadly at the floor.

"Listen, Tigress, you know that I had to keep the secret of your past for a reason. For your safety. I promised your mother that I would keep you safe, and I have thus far. If I didn't, then I would probably not be alive now."

"Is my mother really that...furious?" Tigress smirked.

"OHH! You have your father's emotional sternness, but you get your viciousness from your mother. But thankfully, you're the much better and friendlier side of her," Po said smiling.

"So what's Tiger like?" She asked.

"Oh, he's mostly like his father; stern, strict, understanding, and likes a good challenge. But he's lightened up I guess since last time. Probably from his daughter. Come on, let's catch up with the group," Po said as they rushed off to find the others.

"And here we have the showers and-"

"This is great and all Tiger, but we have more urgent business. You know, like the entry into another war," Mei said bluntly as Tigress and Po caught up.

"Oh of course, but I think that my dear sister would like to meet her parents first, right?" Tiger offered. Tigress looked Po nervously. Po patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll be with you," Po smiled.

"You always are," Tigress smiled back. She nodded at Tiger as he led them down the hall to their parents room. Tiger knocked on the door and the servant opened it. There Tigress saw an older, a little smaller, yet still somehow beautiful version of herself folding clothes. Another tiger in the room was bigger than Tiger but older was meditating near a window.

"Oh, Tiger, my son. You've come to visit," The woman tiger said.

"Mother, we live in the same house," Tiger stated.

"Yes, but I hardly see," She replied.

"Anyways, everyone this is Tigra, my mother and that's Qiang, my father. Mother, father, this is Lee and Mei, Emperor and Empress of Japan and legendary Samurais. You've already met Po," Tiger said.

"Yes, I have," Tigra said menacingly. Po gulped, "So, is my daughter safe, panda?"

"Hehehe," Po nervously laughed, "Funny you should say that. She's right here actually," Po pointed to the stiff Tigress. Tigra and Qiang gasped in amazement. The three tigers slowly came to each other.

"It is you," Tigra cried. Tigress felt herself tear up too, "Welcome home," Tigra said hugged her daughter. Qiang hugged her too. Tigress hugged back.

"I've finally found you," Tigress said tearfully as they released.

"See, safe and sound. Now there is no need for you to quote 'Rip my fluffy little tail out and shoved down my throat'," Po replied. Tigress looked at her mother.

"I'm...very...unique in my own way," Tigra said.

"So, you're finally here. Not that we don't want you, but why did you bring her here amiss all the struggles?" Qiang asked.

"Because we are going to need her here to fight. She's a skilled Kung Fu Warrior, and we need her strength to get out of this mess," Po explained. Then Leo came in with Miwa.

"Hi, everybody. Hi grandma and grandpa," Miwa smiled.

"AAAHH! TIGRA!" Leo screamed as he jumped onto Po's head. Tigra shook her head.

"I see you brought the 'Demon Fighter' with you," She said.

"You know him, Mother?" Tiger asked.

"He saved us from some bandits and even made us food, but umm...Tigra is the main reason why Leo's a little afraid of her," Qiang said in a low voice.

"A LOT afraid," Leo corrected as he got down from Po's head, "I cook them food. Then Tigra snapped and said she would quote 'pluck out my tail, rip out my claws from their sockets, use them as writing materials, and whip me with my own tail'!" Tigress's eyes widened while Po was laughing.

"What did you do?" Lee asked in amazement.

"My little tail ACCIDENTALLY brushes against her butt," Leo pointed out, "Ever since then I've been more afraid of tigers than ever. In fact, when I saw Tigress, I thought it was Tigra. She looks so much like her."

"Wow, it just goes to show you something, Tigress," Po said, "You get it from her."

"Luckily, she had the calmness of her father," Leo sighed.

"You're very verbally violent," Tigress stated to her mother.

"What? I'm just making sure that the line is established," Tigra said innocently.

"Speaking of food, let's eat. I'll cook my father's noodle soup. And I'll stay FAR away from Tigra's behind," Po laughed.

**to be continued.**


	9. The Plan

The Plan

* * *

"That was some good food, Po," Qiang commented. Po smiled as the servant ducks took up the dishes.

"Sorry to talk about business at the table, but we do need to talk about this," Po brought up. Tiger put down the cup he had been sipping.

"You're right. General!" He called. A mean-looking buff tiger with an eye-patch came in with a scroll in hand. He bowed and placed it on the table, "Everyone this is General Lu-yin, general of my army. He's made a map of all the places where Wong-Hu's attacks have occurred. The problem is that we don't know where he is." The general laid down the map that he had made. It was marked by x's. Po, Lee, and Leo stood up and gathered around the map.

"Well, looks like that trip to Japan will have to wait. I know exactly where he is, though," Po stated, "Wong-Hu's a Siberian Tiger, so he would naturally go to the mountains. That's why all of his attacks are near the mountain range."

"How do you know that?" Tigress asked.

"I've traveled a lot. You're not the only tigers I've seen," Po smirked.

"What makes it worse is that is that Wong-Hu's a _white _Siberian Tiger. It will make it more difficult to attack him in the snow," Leo said.

"You know a lot about your fear," Miwa mentioned.

"You have to in order to feel safe," Leo shrugged, "So what's the plan?"

"We could press your army to the mountains, but Wong-Hu's group has more experience there. That and fighting Wong-Hu alone will be dangerous," Lee argued.

"Not if we cripple him," Po said as an idea flew into his mind, "In theory, if we were to severely hurt Wong-Hu in a way where he couldn't fight, then that would eliminate him from the fighting field. Then his followers would have to fight and then we could easily follow them. Orange is easier to track than white." Everyone looked at Po with surprised faces.

"That...is...actually a very very good plan," Tigress slowly commented.

"Don't sound too surprised," Po grumbled. Lee patted Po on the back.

"Nice to have you back, Zaber," Lee smiled, "So, we'll go towards the mountains. I'll send word to the upper region of China to press down on the mountain side to trap them. We can't move until we hear word from them."

"Have them bring all the canons they can make too. General Lu-Yin, what season is it?" Po asked.

"It's nearing winter. About three days," The one-eye tiger said.

"Good," Po stated, "When the winter sets in we can easily bombard the mountains to get them out. And cause avalanches to crush them." Everyone looked at Po in horror. "Sorry, Tigra must be rubbing off on me."

"Oh sure, blame it on me," Tigra said.

"Anyways, we're stuck here until we can get the message through. General, is there a way for you to train your men to accommodate the wintry trail here?" Leo asked.

"There's a couple of snowy mountains below us away from Wong-Hu that we could train at. But it will take awhile," General Lu-Yin explained.

"Good. I'll have the messenger go to the Furious Five first then go to Upper China," Lee said rolling up the scroll and giving it to the general, "In the meantime, we need to be training too. We're a little sloppy since our golden years."

"I agree," Po said looking at his stomach, "I've gained a few pounds since last time," Lee and Mei looked at him, "Okay, a little bit more than 'a few'"

"There's a training grounds in the palace you could use to help you, but now I think we all need some rest. It's getting late," Tiger said yawning. Everyone agreed. The servants showed the team their beds. Mei and Lee were in one room and Po and Tigress in another. Miwa and Leo shared the same room as they slept in separate beds, which unnerved Leo to the highest, but Miwa calmed him down. Po was sleeping their room, but Tigress couldn't sleep. There was too much going around in her head. Questions. Questions that only Po seemed to know. She propped up on one arm to look at Po's back. She fought with herself whether or no to wake him up.

"If you want to talk," Po said startling her, "You just had to ask."

"I didn't mean to wake you," Tigress said apologetic.

"Nah, it's okay. What's wrong?" Po asked concerned.

"Po, could I ask you more about my family?" she asked. Po smiled

"Sure. Anything," Po offered.

"What did they use to work as?"

"Oh well, your mother, interestingly enough, was named La-Ju, the greatest assassin in China," Po said marveling Tigress, "And your father, amazingly, was the original Midnight Stranger. So when you had a crush on the Midnight Stranger, you really had a crush on your father."

"I didn't have a crush on the Midnight Stranger," Tigress denied.

"Oh sure, and you putting on perfume and anxious to see the him when I was him, was your normal greeting," Po smirked, "Your parents also had something to do with the Emperor of Japan, Bao-Ai, but I don't know what that was about. Abba kept that away from us."

"What was Bao-Ai like?" Tigress asked curiously.

"Very...characteristic. He was like Shifu but much less strict. He was very loving to all of us equally. Oh but he absolutely hated Windbag. Oh man, Lee said when he died, Bao-Ai said he would wring Wingbag's neck in the afterlife," Po chuckled as Tigress lightly giggled.

"You must miss him," Tigress said sadly.

"Yeah," Po said sadly, "I shouldn't have left. Should have stayed there and be with him."

"If you didn't leave, then you would have never become Dragon Warrior," Tigress pointed out, "I think your father would have wanted you to protect the valley."

"I know," Po sighed. Tigress felt sorry for him. She never can recall him ever really crying out of sadness. The only time he ever cried was when he was cutting onions. Tigress put her hand on his shoulder as he turned his head over.

"It's alright. I know you would have made your father proud. Good-night, Po," Tigress said finally going to sleep.

"Good night," Po replied falling asleep.

**to be continued. **


	10. Training Day

Training Day

* * *

The next morning, Tigress woke up to see that Po had left his bed already. He left a note that said, 'Went to go train. No, I'm serious. I'm training.' The reason why that was weird to Tigress was that Po never got up early to train. But she figured that it was different when it came to this. She stretched around then got ready to greet Po and the others. One of the duck servants pointed her to the training hall where Po and Lee were fine tuning their samurai skills. Zaber's sword knocked Two-side back to the ground. Lee rubbed his head as Po helped him back up. "I thought that your skills would lessen after all these years, but now I see that they've only increased," Lee commented.

"Thanks," Po said unsure how to replied. Then he noticed Tigress watching by the side. He nervously cleared his throat, "Um...let's get back to training," Po said to Lee. They stood facing each other with their swords drawn. Lee ran at Po as their katanas clashed together. Po actually jumped over Lee and knocked him off his feet with his feet. Lee got back up, plunged his katana into the ground, and used it to throw his body forward. Po dodged to the right and hit Lee at a number of points to throw him off.

"You sneaky little," Lee muttered frustrated. He ran towards Po swinging his swords left and right. Po blocked each one with his katana. Then he blocked one of Lee's swings, rolled the sword around, and flung it out of Lee's hand. Po then took his hand and used the move that Yijiro used on him when they first met. Tigress was amazed! He had only seen...well experienced the move one time and he could replicate it. Po was now sitting on Lee and he flailed out against the ground. "Uncle! Uncle!" Po smiled as he slowly got up from him, helping him up as well. "Thank goodness Mei wasn't here to see that," Lee said undignified.

"Too late," Mei said leaning against one of the pillars of the training arena. Lee flinched in embarrassment when she heard her voice. She smirked at him. "It looks like Zing-Zing has gotten better in his absence. You and Lee use to be equally matched. Now you've far surpassed him." Lee huffed a little in jealousy. Mei grabbed his arm and smiled warmly at him. "But you did good too, honey."

"Oh sure. Give me a compliment after the insult," Lee complained. Po chuckled.

"Thank you, Milady." Then he turned around to see Tigress standing at the entry way, "Good morning, Master Tigress. How was your sleep?"

"Um...good thanks," Tigress said a little unsure. "So, how do I train for the upcoming battle?" Po looked around. Then he saw Leo coming in with his tea.

"Leo can train with you," Po said surprising Leo to the fullest.

"Who can do what with who now?" Leo said surprised.

"Of course you'll help her. After all, who knows the ways of the tiger better than you?" Po smiled patting Leo on the back. Leo looked at him with mouth opened and eyes wide.

"You son of a motherless goat," Leo said still in a state of shock.

"Motherless goat? Is such a thing possible? Anyways, I still need to train with Lee and Mei on my samurai techniques. You, the Fighting Demon, are free, aren't you? Unless you have a date with a certain tigress in which I could use that over your head for blackmail," Po said smiling innocently. Leo still had his shocked face on.

"You evil little panda. I will kill you," He said perfectly calm. Po patted him on the back.

"Wouldn't have it any other way," Po replied going back to his training. Leo rolled his eyes as he directed Tigress to come with him.

"That blasted panda's getting on my nerves," Leo muttered drinking his tea.

"You don't have to spar with me if you don't want to, Leo," Tigress replied.

"No, unfortunately, Po's right. You need someone to train with and I'm the only one available. I will train you if you promise to pour hot sauce in Po's soup," Leo offered. Tigress chuckled a little smiling deviously.

"Deal," She said.

"Good. Now, for me to train you, we're going to have to go back to your basic inner tiger instincts. I've heard that you didn't have much of a good energetic childhood from Po," Leo replied. Tigress nodded sadly, "Well, since you didn't have the time to train for those instincts, we're going to have to wake them up; which I hate doing because it usually ends up giving me bruises."

"How do we do that?" Tigress asked.

"Basically, there's an exercise that the children here do in order to get the long-lasting durability and agility in their bodies. It also wakes up their senses," Leo explained.

"How does the exercise go?" Tigress asked.

"Like this," Leo replied pouring the tea on her head. He threw the mug away and quickly tapped Tigress's shoulder, "Tag! You're it!" Then he dashed off.

"LEO!" Tigress shouted, chasing after him.

"Well, this is going to be fun," Leo muttered to himself.

* * *

About a good hour passed until Tigress finally tackled Leo to the ground. She had to use all her senses: sight, hearing, smell, touch, and even taste. (Don't ask how, please) "You...are...going to...pay for...what you did," Tigress panted.

"Do you even remember what I did?" Leo asked. Tigress paused for a moment. She had honestly forgotten.

"No. I don't," She replied.

"Now," Leo said getting up again, "Because we were running and hiding and running everywhere, your senses and instincts started to kick in. You're a bit rusty with it, but you'll get the hang of it." Then Po came with Tiger.

"Everyone alright here? We heard a lot of ruckus," Tiger explained.

"No, I was just being chased by Tigress for a stimulating exercise. And it worked. Same time tomorrow," Leo reminding her.

"That's good," Po said, "Um...Tigress could I ask you a question in private?" Then a light went off in Tigress's head.

"In a moment, Po. I just remembered why I was chasing Leo," She said menacingly looking at him, "You poured hot tea on my head." Leo slowly backed up.

"Well, you see, that was only to get you to chase me," Leo explained laughing nervously.

"WELL IT WORKED!" she shouted.

"Oh boy," Leo said as he dashed off again with Tigress on his tail. Po and Tiger did an awkward laugh while Tiger rubbed the back of his head.

"She um...just like her mother, isn't she?" Tiger observed.

"Oh no, she will never be _that _ bad," Po corrected. Tiger silently agreed.

**to be continued.**


	11. The Story Behind the Jin-Min

The Story Behind Jin-Min

* * *

As promised by Tigress, she poured hot sauce into Po's breakfast resulting in Po screaming and jumping around fanning his tongue. The team got a laugh out of this. Then Tigress remember a question that Po had. So after the panda's flaming fiasco, Tigress took Po aside and spoke to him about it. "What did you want to ask me about?" she asked. Po looked confused, "There was a question that you wanted to ask me last night. What was it?" Po instantly became nervous.

"Oh! That! Um...You know what? I forgot it. Sorry about that" Po said nervously waving it off, but Tigress sensed he was hiding something.

"Po, what's wrong?"

"It's a silly question, really it is?"

"I thought you didn't remember the question."

"Well, I...um...darn it!" Po said making Tigress chuckle a little.

"What is it Po?" she asked. Po was silent for a moment.

"Well, have you ever been in love with someone?" Po asked awkwardly. Tigress's attitude dramatically changed from curious and light-hearted to...something that Po thought he would never see.

"You're in love? With who?" Tigress asked impatiently.

"Whoa, easy. I was just curious if _you _ever were in love with someone?"

"But why now? Here, who are you in love with?" She asked in a rather angry tone.

"No one. I'm not in love with...anyone," Po said only lying partially. Was that _Jealousy _that he was hearing from her? No, couldn't be. In any case, she seemed to settle down a bit.

"No. I've never been in love...much," Tigress said fibbing a little.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well you know that I had a crush on Shifu when I was a teen. Then, I admit, I had a crush on the Midnight Stranger, and well...I don't think you'll like the other-"

"I know you had a thing for Yijiro," Po said calmly. Tigress looked at him. "You can't hide ALL your emotions." Tigress sighed defeated.

"Well. Yeah, other than that, I've never been in love. Well, True love. Now, why do you ask?" Tigress flipped the tables.

"I was just curious," Po said.

"Okay, then have you ever been in love?" She asked. Po looked around nervously.

"Well, yes and no. I mean, I had a thing for Song, then the girl who was trying to marry me. But I've come to the realization that I will never fall in love."

"Why?" Tigress asked a little disappointed that Po was giving up.

"Tigress, it's practically impossible for me to have a girlfriend, much less a girl who would like me. I mean it's a either: I'm a panda, I'm the Dragon Warrior, or someone's trying to kill me."

"I...don't understand," Tigress said confused.

"I'm a panda. Correction: I'm a quote "Big Fat Stinky Panda." People wouldn't exactly try to go out with someone like that. I'm the Dragon Warrior. Since I'm the Dragon Warrior, people just want me for popularity and riches. Then Someone's trying to kill me. If there's some girl that gets pass the first two, they're usually related to or involved with someone who want's to kill me or do something bad. Case and point: Song and Lin-shu (**I think that's her name**)"

"You can't give up that easily," Tigress encouraged.

"Tigress, I've been at this for a long time. You give up hope after a while," Po said sadly. Tigress unsheathed one of her claws on her finger and placed it sharply on Po's chest.

"Don't. Give. Up," She said VERY sternly, scaring Po a little. "So what certain girls don't see that you're a good guy? Doesn't matter. There's a person for everyone, Po. You just have to patient. Never forget that. Got it?" Po couldn't really argue at this point. He simply nodded. "Good. Now, I have to train with Leo. Don't forget what I said." She walked away. Po noticed she was swinging her tail and hips a certain way. Almost in an alluring way. Tigress looked back and smirked. Po's eyes widened as she turned the corner. Was she just flirting with him?! Po shook his head trying to brush it off. Nah! She would never do that. Would she? He didn't really know. But he liked thinking about it.

Meanwhile, Tigress had just walked in on Miwa and Leo talking to each other. They seem really relaxed. In fact, it was the first time that Tigress had ever seen Leo smiling around a tiger. She did a purposeful cough to get their attention. "I'm sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I need to train with Leo," Tigress said.

"Oh, um...of course," Miwa said blushing, "Well I'll leave you with Tigress, Leo. Goodbye."

"Goodbye," Leo said waving her off. As she went away, Tigress chuckled at Leo's daze.

"You really like her, huh?" Tigress said.

"Huh? What I...Um.. *sigh* let's just get back to your training," Leo said defeated, "Today, you'll just have to chase me around the _entire_ palace."

"To be honest with you, Leo, I don't feel like chasing you today. Can't we do something else?" she asked.

"That's what I thought you would say. So I took the liberty of taking this from your room," Leo answered producing a tattered journal. Tigress's eyes went wide, "And I can tell you that the part about Po is very interesting," Leo smiled evilly.

"LEO! GIVE THAT BACK!" Tigress shouted chasing after him with redness in her face.

"You'll have to catch me first!" Leo said teasingly and dashing off. While the two were running around, Po and Tiger talked for a while.

"You see, after I was chosen Dragon Warrior, the Furious Five and Master Shifu were all against me. They didn't think I was the right choice for Dragon Warrior," Po was explaining how be became the Dragon Warrior.

"Did you think you were the right choice?" Tiger asked. Po's ears sank a little.

"No, I didn't. In fact, I was ready to go when they said they didn't want me there," Po shook his head trying to get rid of the memory, "But anyways, we've got to talk about how you got to be leader of this place."

"Well, I was able to rally a rag-tag team to overthrow the previous leader. I even got some of his own men on the conspiracy. But when I heard that Wong-Hu heard about the conspiracy, I had to move quickly. So we manage to invade the palace and seize it and killed the leader. But Wong-Hu got away. I thought that he wouldn't do anything else, but then.." A tear came into Tiger's eye, "Then he killed my wife in a dark alley. That's why I was so afraid for Miwa, because she would have gone the same way. She was _suppose _to go with an escort, but she's like her mother and stubbornly wanted to go low key."

"Um...no offense, Tiger, but that's your family as well. I'm sorry for your loss, though," Po said sadly.

"It's alright. I've been managing. So you and my sister seem to be doing very well," Tiger said in a teasing manner. Po rolled his eyes.

"It may LOOK like it, but at home we barely can sustain a friendship. I usually screw up or do something to make her angry. It's only now that I've seen her mellow some," Po sighed. Tiger patted him on the shoulder.

"She's Tigra's daughter. What did you expect?" Tiger replied.

"Well, I didn't know that until I came here and met her. Then I realized why she was this way. I guess I should count myself lucky," Po said while Tiger looked at him wait for him to speak, "She could be a lot worse."

"How?"

"She could be EXACTLY like Tigra," Po said making both of them laugh.

**To be continued.**


	12. Blackmail

Blackmail

* * *

Po was gently resting from his exercise from Mei and Lee. Leo and Tigress were still chasing each other around. What Leo did this time, Po didn't know. Then he heard something. "I WILL COOK YOU ALIVE YOU MISCREANT!" Po jumped at the voice, but he knew who it was. He sighed as he walked over to Tigra and Qiang's room. There when he opened the door, a duck servant ran out for his life. Po looked at Tigra to see the funniest thing in his life. The servant had accidentally spill noodle soup all over her. She was steaming, both from anger and the hot soup. Po shook his head. Poor duck.

"Tigra, don't you think you are a little hot tempered?" Po suggested. Tigra took a deep breath.

"Look at me! Ugh! You're right, Po. I did overreact. I need to calm down," Tigra said surprising Po.

"Wow, you're agreeing with me. That's new," Po said.

"Hey, even my daughter is like this," Tigra said.

"I disagree. Tigress is much calmer than you," Po stated. Then...

"GIVE IT BACK YOU RAT!" Tigress shouted as Leo bursted into the room. Leo kept dodging her using the table.

"Come now, Tigress. It's not that bad! It's just a book!" Leo cried out. Tigress jumped over table. "Yipe!" Leo crawled under the table and ran outside.

"GET BACK HERE YOU RAT!" Tigress yelled. Tigra looked and Po with a smirk.

"No comment," Po muttered. Just then General Lu-yin came in, "Ah general. Finally, someone who DOESN'T have a short fuse. What's new?"

"The soldiers are being trained in the mountains and our scouts confirm that you were right. There have been sightings of Wong-Hu," The one eye tiger replied.

"Good, so about the northern fleet?"

"We're still waiting for the message to come back, but that's not really why I'm here," General Lu-Yin said seriously. He moved Po out of Tigra's room and talked to him in private. "I am worried that with this much timing between these reinforcements that Wong-Hu's men will grow stronger." Po rubbed the back of his head.

"You're right. We still have three more days until the message gets to the North and then another six days back. That's too much time for Wong-Hu," Po muttered. He thought about it for a long time. "Okay, I've got it. How many cannons do you have?"

"We have several factories that manufacture weapons. We have a good number of cannons, but I can order them to make more," the general answered.

"Good, have your men shoot at the top of the mountains to cause avalanches. We can bury them underneath the snow but it probably won't kill them, but it will delay them," Po said.

"But there's a village at the low end of the mountains," the General explained. Po sighed.

"Then we'll have to take the village and make it a fortress. Then we can issue troops from there. Let me see the map," Po asked as the tiger gave it to him.

"You see, the village is at the start of the mountain," General Lu-Yin showed him.

"Okay then, if that's the case, then we'll take the village under our protection and build a fort around it. You see how the mountains are like a fortress on four sides a little. We have to get in that or at least to the top," Po gave the general the map back. "You know what to do. Thank you General." The tiger bowed.

"It's an honor working along side you, honorable Zaber. I wish I had the pleasure of fighting against you when we were still enemies" General Lu-Yin said. Po smiled.

"Me too," He bowed back as the general went away. Just then, Miwa came in. "Hello princess," Po smiled.

"Oh hello Dragon Warrior," Miwa said bowing.

"Just call me Po. So are you looking for Leo?" Po said smiling.

"How did you know?"

"You like him," Po stated as a fact.

"What?! I...um...we...uh, we're just friends," Miwa said blushing to the point that it could be seen despite her orange fur.

"Hmm, I didn't think that tigers' blush could actually be seen," Po observed.

"I'm NOT BLUSHING!" Miwa exclaimed darting her eyes around nervously. She took a deep breath, "Anyways, do you know where Leo is?"

"Last I remembered, Tigress was chasing him about a book," Po said.

"Oh Tigress's journal?" Miwa asked. Po's eyes widened.

"That's why she was chasing him?! Wait, how do you know that it's Tigress's journal?" Po asked.

"We were talking about it when Tigress came in. We didn't look in it, but I'm guessing that Leo used that as blackmail. Probably said that there was a part of Po in there," Miwa thought out loud.

"What do you mean?" Po asked wondering what she meant.

"Well, I guess Leo was lying about the part about you, because we didn't look in it. But if she's chasing him, then there must be a-" Just then she was interrupted by Leo skidding to a stop and charging down the hall they were in.

"Po! I need your help. Just...stand there while get on your head," Leo said quickly scurried onto his head.

"LEO I'LL-" Tigress came to a stop when she saw Po. Leo waved while Tigress composed herself. She cleared her throat, "Um...hello, Dragon Warrior," She said in a dignified manner, "I was just...training Master Leo."

"Master Leo. I like that," Leo said. He heard Tigress growl.

"And he has something of mine," Tigress said menacingly.

"You mean this?" Po asked as he produced her journal. Tigress gasped as she quickly snatched it from Po's hands. Leo was flabbergasted.

"What the- how the- where the- oh forget it. We're done training for today," Leo muttered grumbling.

"Good, come on Leo. There's still part of the palace I want to show you," Miwa said pulling Leo from Po's head and dragged Leo.

"Okay," Leo said with not much of a choice. Po smirked.

"I think Leo's seen all of the palace with you chasing him around, Tigress," Po said. Then he got curious. "So, what's the part about me?"

"YOU READ IT?!" Tigress shouted worried and shocked.

"No," Po said holding up his hands in defense, "Miwa just told me that Leo was going to blackmail you with it. Leo was at first bluffing, but then when you were chasing after him, he guessed that there was actually a part about me." Tigress cursed under her breath.

"It's...um...personal," Tigress said nervously. Po's face sank, "It's nothing bad about you. I just don't feel comfortable sharing it."

"Oh, okay. Well, we're going to moving the troops soon, so Lee and I may not be here tomorrow," Po informed.

"I could go with you," Tigress offered.

"It's alright. We'll only be a little while. See you," Po said waving her off. Tigress stood there waving slowly back. Then she heard Leo in the hall behind her.

"Love, Love Love, Love," He sang. Tigress growled lowly as she just walked away.

**to be continued**


	13. Prepare for Love and War

Prepare for Love and War!

* * *

Tigress sat on the side of the front of the palace looking at the village below her. She had her head held up by her hand as she sighed bored. Po, Mei, and Lee had gone away for their war meeting. Then Miwa came beside her and sat next to her with her hand in holding up her head too. Leo had gone too to the meeting. They both sighed bored. They looked at each other and laughed. "So...my niece," Tigress started.

"Yes, my aunty?" Miwa answered back.

"Is it true that you like Leo?" Tigress asked bluntly. Miwa blushed immensely.

"Yeah, but please don't tell him," Miwa said worried.

"It's okay. My lips are sealed," Tigress said.

"So do you like Po?" Miwa asked back.

"As a friend, yes," Tigress said trying to avoid the next question.

"Do you like him as something more?" Miwa pressed on.

"You ask a lot of questions."

"I asked the same amount of questions you asked."

"No I didn't."

"Yes, you did."

"No."

"Hey! Stop avoiding the question."

"What was the question?"

"Aunty Tigress," Miwa said tried of her evasiveness, "If you hate the panda, just say so."

"I don't hate him! Why does everyone think that?" Tigress asked.

"Because he's told Tigra and Qiang about his life there and you haven't been exactly kind to him sometimes," Miwa revealed. Tigress hung her head.

"Well...Yeah, I guess I was very abusive to him," she said rubbing the back of her head, "I just couldn't believe that he was the Dragon Warrior, the very thing I worked for all my life. But, as I grew around Po, he did deserve to be the Dragon Warrior." Tigress chuckled a little, "Even if he made a lot of mistakes."

"So you like him more than a friend?"

"Yes...I Mean! Um...," She groaned while her niece laughed.

"Don't worry, I won't tell," Miwa promised, "But that brings up another thing that I'm trying to figure out."

"What's that?"

"What are we going to do with out them? It's practically boring around here," Miwa sighed. "When did they say they would come back?"

"An hour from now," Tigress huffed. Miwa huffed too. Then Qiang came out to see them.

"It's good to see you two are getting to know each other," The old tiger smiled. Miwa hugged him.

"Hey, Grandpa," Miwa greeted.

"If you two have some spare time, I could use some help with throwing some old stuff away," Qiang said. Miwa sighed.

"Might as well," Tigress said, "There's nothing else to do." So the three tigers went into Qiang's room there was a whole closet of dusty armor and old papers. They started moving the stuff. Soon they came across an old painting. "Hey, is this us?" Qiang looked over her side and chuckled.

"Yes, you were just 6 months when we had you. Your brother was one at the time," Qiang said. The wedded couple were smiling in the painting while Tiger played with his feet and Tigress smiling seeming to laugh. "Your mother threatened the painter to paint if he didn't hurry up. That's why we could hold the smile."

"What do you see in her?" Miwa asked innocently.

"Well, even if you see a vicious person, I see a kind, beautiful, smart woman," Qiang said. He didn't know that Tigra was right behind her. Miwa and Tigress tried to get him to turn around. When he did, he jumped and smiled sheepishly. But Tigra surprised him by hugging him.

"That is the most...nice, kindest thing you've ever said about me you old bag," She smiled. Qiang breathed a sigh of relief. Then a strange idea came into Tigress's mind.

"Mother, can you come with me to get some information? I think I'll need your 'kind nature' to help me," Tigress asked.

* * *

The duck was thrown across the bar and hit his head at the wall. "I'm telling you! I don't know anything about Wong-Hu!" The duck exclaimed. Tigra picked him up and extracted her claws. She held them close to his face.

"Do you seriously want to be torn to shreds today? I just got these things sharpened," Tigra said seriously. She and Tigress were in the worst part of town in a bar looking for what they could get about Wong-Hu. Tigra was doing the talking.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! All I know is that they were looking to attack the village at the bottom of Mount Shang where they camp out! That's all I know! Please don't hurt me anymore!" The duck begged.

"How do know this?" Tigress asked.

"Wong-Hu's mens come in here from time to time. Earlier today they were bragging to me that they would attack the village three days from now! But they said that they would pound me to dirt if I told anyone," The duck said. Tigra dropped him and he scampered away. Tigress looked around to see all the men they beat still on the ground moaning and groaning.

"I think we're done here," Tigra said walking calmly out. Tigress smirked. She admired her mother's character. "Now we have to tell the others about this."

* * *

"Great," Po muttered, "That won't be good. We're going to have to move the troops faster now." The three were now back from the meeting.

"Or we could just go there," Tigress suggested.

"No. You can't go," Po said. Tigress was a little hurt, "I'm sorry, Tigress, but I was sent to bring you here safely and end Wong-Hu's reign. I can't do that if you're fighting him."

"Po, I'm a Kung Fu fighter. I can handle a couple of villains. I'll be fine," Tigress said.

"Absolutely not, I wouldn't be able to live with...myself if you were hurt," Po said. Then he whispered, "That and Tigra would probably skin me alive."

"And so what is my training for? Even Leo going into this," Tigress exclaimed.

"Come on, Po," Mei said coming in, "Don't you think you're being a little overprotective?"

"No. What if Wong-Hu convinces her to become one of them?" Po asked.

"Po, you're caring a little too much. This is Wong-Hu. we need to stop him and we'll need everyone to do it," Lee suggested. Po groaned.

"Fine," Po said. Then Lee and Mei left the two to talk it out, "I don't like this."

"Why?" Tigress asked angry, "You don't think I'm as strong as you?"

"I DONT WANT TO LOSE YOU!" Po shouted holding Tigress tight. Tigress was shocked. "I can't lose you, okay? This isn't just another bad guy. This is war. I don't want you to get hurt. I...I...I love you too much for that to happen," Po whispered.

"Wwwwhat did you say?" Tigress stuttered looking into his eyes.

"I...I said that I...I..." He never finished as he kissed Tigress. Tigress's eyes fluttered shut as she wrapped her arms around the big panda. She purred happily through kiss. As they released, Tigress smiled.

"I love you, too," Tigress said.

"Aw man," Leo muttered. Both them jumped out other each other's arms. Miwa just came in too.

"What are you doing here, Leo?" Tigress asked embarrassed.

"Watching myself lose a bet," Leo murmured as he handed Miwa some money. He walked towards them. "The worse part is that I don't have anything anymore to blackmail you with," Leo explained.

"Leo, you could just ask me to chase you," Tigress offered.

"Well, there's always the back up. Miwa, staff please," Leo asked. Miwa handed him a bo-staff. Leo took it and bashed Tigress with it and ran off.

"LEO!" Tigress said angrily chasing the rat. Po sighed as Miwa giggled.

**to be continued.**


	14. The Battlefield

The Battlefield

* * *

Tigress, Po, Lee, Mei, and Leo were ready for their departure into the battle zone. Miwa hugged Leo tight before he went. "Please come back safe," Miwa pleaded. Leo hugged back.

"I promise I'll come back alive," Leo assured. They departed for the village at the bottom of Mount Shang. "So we have the troops coming behind us and the northern fleet, right?"

"Well, yes on the troops behind us, no on the northern fleet. We can't wait anymore. We're just going to stop the attack and then wait for the reinforcements," Lee explained. Leo stopped in his tracks.

"That's...not a good battle strategy," Leo said.

"Well, we don't have much of a choice," Lee sighed. Leo dashed off in front of them.

"Then we better hurry!" Leo exclaimed. They ran after him. They reached the village in record time. Lee was panting out of breath.

"That...was...very...tiring," Lee panted. Mei helped Lee up giggling.

"Looks like you're out of shape," The orange cat laughed. Lee huffed.

"I'm in shape. 'Tired' is a shape," Lee insisted.

"Um, guys? Can we focus on the mission here?" Leo said. The village was a little bleak and grey. Must be due to the mountainous region. Anyways, The group was just getting in when the invasion started. Suddenly, there were people rushing to their houses and homes. "Well, looks like we're not going to be able to rest a little," Leo sighed. The group could see them charging down the mountain.

"Lee, Tigress, you guys try and break some headway at the front. Leo, you go with them. Mei and I will stay down here and pick out any strays," Po instructed. The wolf, tiger, and rat ran up the mountain. However, Leo could faintly see someone distinct in the crowd.

"It's Wong-Hu!" Leo exclaimed pointing to the leading man. Tigress could see for herself that Wong-Hu was definitely big and mean-looking. Po was right. She could hardly see him with all the snow. Leo extracted his sharp claws, Lee pulled out his swords, and Tigress got into her fighting stance. Soon, they clashed with the invading army. Lee's swords sliced through the shields. Leo slid and jumped over rhinos and tigers punching them out.

"Some are getting away!" Tigress shouted kicking one rhino into another.

"Po and Mei will get them. If not Po then Mei will surely get them," Lee replied. Tigress jumped back and grabbed a sword. She had just so happened to jump in front of Wong-Hu.

"Well, I didn't know that 'Emperor Tiger' had woman warriors as soldiers. The kingdom must be weak," Wong-Hu said with an evil smile that reminded Tigress of Tai-Lung. Tigress punched and kicked at Wong-Hu but he dodged them. Wong-Hu tried to sweep Tigress off her feet, but Tigress jumped out of...sweeping-range? "You're pretty good."

"You're not too bad yourself," Tigress replied. Then Wong-Hu realized something.

"You're the Jin-Min warrior, aren't you?" Wong-Hu said. Tigress stay silent as her intimidating glare was fixed on him. "Then why are you fighting me? You know your prophecy. You're suppose to join us in destroying Japan! Come on, you know it's your destiny, why prolong it?" Tigress thought about it for a moment. Then she remember Leo and all the others that were hurt by Wong-Hu.

"No, you've hurt too many people for me to ever join you. Plus, there's someone I want you to me," Tigress smiled wickedly. Leo jumped over Tigress and took a major slash at Wong-Hu. Wong-Hu stumbled back, but Leo wasn't stopping there. He took a spear he took from one of the guards and plunged it into both of Wong-Hu's arms. When Leo was about to finish him off, Wong-Hu clawed at Leo's abdomen.

"LEO!" Tigress cried as Leo went down. Tigress picked Leo up and ran down the mountain. A few of Wong-Hu's men came to pick him up. The invasion was over, Po and Mei had captured the strays. When they saw Tigress and Lee running down the mountain, they saw that Leo was injured in Tigress's arms.

"Quickly, get him into that house," Mei instructed. Soon, Leo was bandaged up around his stomach. Tigress explained what happened. Po sighed.

"You guys are lucky you didn't get killed," Po said sternly.

"Po, we were okay. If anything, Leo was the real menace here. You should have seen how he clawed at him," Tigress said. Mei looked at Lee. He was cleaning off his bloodstained swords. Lee noticed his wife glaring at him.

"Don't worry, I just wounded. I told the guards here to pick up the wounded," Leo soothed.

"I said we need to wound Wong-Hu. Not put him in the near-death stage," Po said frustrated.

"He deserved it," Leo muscled out. Mei gently pushed him back down on the bed.

"You promised Miwa that you would return unhurt," Po reminded.

"I promised that I would come back 'alive'. I didn't say would come back unscathed," Leo corrected. Po grunted a sigh as he pinched his nose. Tigress rested her hand on Po's shoulder as she smiled.

"It's alright, Po. We finished off most of Wong-Hu's men. Everyone's okay," Tigress said. Po went outside to look at mountain. Tigress went outside with him. "What's wrong?"

"It's what Wong-Hu said to you. Do you have any doubt about your destiny?" Po asked with his eyes fixed on the mountain. Tigress thought about what he said.

"I did a little, but then I remembered the people he hurt and I couldn't do that," Tigress replied. Then she leaned her head on Po's side. "That and I wouldn't want to be against you in battle. It would tear me apart." Po chuckled.

"But sparing is different?" Po asked chuckling a bit.

"Of course, I can beat you up any way I want that way," Tigress replied. They both laughed. Then Po attitude got serious.

"Tigress, do you ever regret loving me when you first loved me?" Po asked. Tigress's smile turned into a frown.

"Well, the times when you and I would argue did make me question why, but...the truth is that half the time I argued, it was because I didn't want to seem...soft," Tigress said quietly. Po looked at her. "What?"

"Tigress, the day you seem soft, is the day that Tigra is gentle," Po said making her giggle a bit. "Just remember that even if you seem soft, that doesn't mean that it's a bad thing. I mean look at me," Po said patting his belly. "And I'm Dragon Warrior and the Mighty Zaber." Tigress chuckled.

"Well, when I was young, I didn't trust that many people because I was just ridiculed," Tigress said sadly.

"So is that why you were so mad at me for making mistakes around you in public?" Po asked. Tigress nodded.

"But I realized it was okay. I just had to let it go like you did. So I never did regret loving you to answer your question," Tigress smiled. Tigress kissed Po's cheek. Po blushed.

"I love you, too. I never have or will regret it," Po said.

"Hey, you two get in here. It's cold," Mei spoke. The two went into the warmth of the little house.

**to be continued. **


	15. Prophecy Fulfilled

Prophecy Fulfilled

* * *

The next morning, the group woke up early to discuss their plans. "So where do we stand now?" Mei asked.

"Well, judging from the injuries that I saw on him, he won't be moving for a long time," Tigress said. Everyone looked at him. "Leo did some major damage to him," Tigress reminded.

"That reminds me, we're down one soldier now. What are we going to do?" Lee asked. Po thought about it for a moment.

"Well, we're going to have to stay put until the reinforcements arrive. Until then, we're going to have to protect the village. The old lady that lives here says we can stay as long as we want," Po suggested.

"I agree. We either go through with Po's plan or wait for miracle to happen," Mei sighed. About five days past and the team was able to stop most of the confrontations between Wong-Hu's men. Then Tigress got an idea. In the middle of the night, she snuck out of the team's house and braved up the mountain with Po's sword. She had a crazy idea. She braved the wintry trail of the mountain. Soon, she found a cave that was guarded by rhinos.

"That must be Wong-Hu's hideout," Tigress said to herself. Suddenly, she felt a shadow come upon her. She jumped around and stuck the sword out.

"Easy, it's just me," Leo whispered.

"Leo? What are you doing here? You should be in bed resting," Tigress scolded.

"And you should be down the mountain," Leo reminded, "My wounds already healed up. I was just tired from the healing that's all." He showed her the scar in his abdomen. It was nearly completely faded only after five days! "I heal pretty fast. So what's the crazy idea here?"

"Well, you know how Mei said we would need a miracle? I think I have a plan," Tigress whispered it to him.

"That's completely insane with only a small percent chance that we'll make it out alive," Leo replied.

"So you'll help me?" She asked hopefully. Leo sighed.

"What are we waiting for?" Leo shrugged. They quickly and quietly took out the guards. They sneaked down the dimly lit corridors of the cave until they came to a big opening. They saw that there was a manufacturing going on. For cannons.

"Just as I thought. They're going to attack the village with cannons. We're going to need to blow the whole thing up," Tigress whispered to Leo out of sight.

"Is that why you're carrying a stick of dynamite?" Leo said referring to red thing she had in her hand.

"It has a 30 minute fuse. That means we have to put it in a good place," Tigress replied.

"Leave it to me," Leo said as he grabbed the stick. He jumped quietly underneath one of the boxes. He snuck around to one of the barrels of gunpowder. He lit the fuse and scurried back to Tigress.

"Good, now let's get out of here," Tigress said getting up. Then she realized that a giant gorilla was behind them.

"Uh-Oh," Leo squeaked.

The next moment they were thrown in front of a bed-ridden Wong-Hu.

"So, you thought that you could discover my plan and just go off scot free?" He said.

"A little, yeah," Leo replied sarcastically. Wong-Hu shook his head with an evil smile.

"What can a woman and a rat do against one of the greatest generals of all China?" Wong-Hu challenged.

"Well, a panda was able to stand against you," Tigress muttered.

"Ah, you mean the dreaded Zaber. That panda just gets lucky all the time and nothing more. But you're different, my sweet," Wong-Hu said referring to Tigress. "If you join me, you can make all your people proud of you." Tigress thought about it. Would Shifu be pleased? She shook it off. No, of course not. She growled.

"Sorry, Wong-Honey," She teased, "But I won't do that. I have a job to protect the innocent and that includes Japan."

"If it weren't for Japan being at war with us, you would have grown up with your family!" He exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter, because I found a new family and friends and people who truly love me for who I am," She replied boldly. Leo smiled.

"Oh and Wong-Hu," Leo started, "The next time you underestimate warriors like us, be careful," Leo said as he jumped up behind one of the guards. He took the knife he had and cut the ropes wrapped around him. He quickly took out the guard and cut Tigress loose. She ran up to Wong-Hu's paralyzed body.

"I should destroy you right now for all the pain you've caused," Tigress said putting the Zaber sword to his throat, but she pulled back, "But I've got bigger things to do." She took one of the soldiers swords and pinned Wong-Hu to the bed. "Don't go anywhere."

"Come on, let's go," Leo shouted. They ran to the exit as the whole army started to chase them. "How many minutes do we have until that thing explodes!"

"About ten minutes. I guess," Tigress said punching out a guard and kept running.

"YOU'RE GUESSING!" Leo shouted.

"Hey, it's better than I don't know! We just need to get to the bottom of the mountain before it goes off," Tigress instructed. They dodged and weaved by guards blocking their way. They finally got outside.

"Okay, we're out, it's cold, and the sun's about to come out. What do we do now?" Leo asked still being chased by the guards. Tigress saw something at the village front. It was a lone cannon guarded by a sleeping rhino.

"I have to get that cannon! Stall some time for me," Tigress instructed. Leo nodded as he started attacking the chasers. Tigress bolted down the mountain at lightning speed. "Hmm, all that running and chasing Leo really paid off," She thought to herself. She finally got to the cannon and started loading it. Leo fell back to her. The horde was still coming down the mountain.

"So what's the plan?" He asked.

"Hit the top of that mountain to seal the cave before the dynamite goes off," Tigress quickly explained lighting the cannon by striking Po's sword against the cannon which created sparks. She took aim.

"You know that the chances of you hitting the needed point of that mountain are a million to one, right?!" Leo exclaimed.

"Don't tell me the odds!" Tigress shot back. Finally the cannon went off. Everyone watched as it zinged through the air to the top of the mountain. It hit the mountain with surprising power, knocking rocks over the entry of the cave.

"You think the dynamite is going to go off?" He asked. Then...

**BOOOM! **

The ground shook as the dynamite and all the gunpowder went off, causing an avalanche to destroy most of the guards still caught on the mountain. Everyone was outside to see what was the matter. They cheered and celebrated as Tigress breathed a sigh of relief. The reinforcements finally came to capture any strays. Leo rested his hand on Tigress's shoulder.

"You did well, Jin-Min warrior. You've brought honor and glory to the Jin-Min," He smiled. Tigress actually smiled back. Then they turned back to see Po right behind them. He looked mad. Tigress looked at the ground ashamed.

"Po, I know that you're mad at me for taking such a gutsy, chancy risk, and I know that you were worried sick. I'm sorry for worrying you," She said quietly.

"You are as crazy and stubborn and rebellious as your mother," Po stated. Then he quickly wrapped his arms around her waist, lifted her up, and spun her around. Then he kissed her on the lips surprising her. "And I love that about you. I'm just glad that you're all safe," Po smiled. Tigress smiled back. "Don't. Do it. Again, Please," Po said firmly. Tigress chuckled a little. Mei and Lee came out too to celebrate with Tigress.

"Now for the journey home," Lee sighed, "The war is finally over."

**to be continued.**

* * *

**Sorry if the chapter sounds rushed. I wanted to get this one out as quick as possible. **


	16. The War is Over

The War is Over

* * *

Miwa waited anxiously in her room. She was so jumpy. She paced around, drank some tea, tried to sleep, but she would just not sit still. Soon, Tiger came in. "You're worried about Leo?" Tiger asked.

"Yes. What if he's hurt or worse?" Miwa wondered letting her fantasy get the best of her. Tiger laid his hand on his daughter's shoulder.

"It's alright. He'll be okay. He promised he would come back unharmed," Tiger reminded.

"I said I would come back back alive," Leo said coming into the room. The two tigers turned back to see Leo hunched over holding his stomach and the rest of the gang. Miwa jumped into Leo's arms overjoyed.

"You're back!" she squealed. Leo grunted in pain. Miwa released him. "You're hurt! Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," Leo smiled. Po, Tigress, Lee, and Mei came in behind them.

"Well?" Tiger asked.

"We won. The war is over. Thanks to your sister here," Po said looking at Tigress.

"You finished off Wong-Hu?" Tiger asked.

"All by herself," Po smiled. Tiger bowed before her.

"You are the Jin-Min Warrior who was promised to bring honor and glory to the Jin-Min," He stated. Po and Tigress just looked at each with bemused smiles.

"And to think, we were your enemy," Tigress teased. Po smirked.

"What makes you think your still aren't," Po replied laughing as Tigress pushed him playfully.

"But I couldn't have done any of this without Leo's help," Tigress said giving the mouse credit. Leo smirked.

"That won't get you out of training, you know," Leo replied.

"I know," Tigress shrugged. Just then a deer messenger arrived.

"The Furious Five and Master Shifu are here, your majesty. Plus, your servant is here Emperor Lee," He said. Mei, Lee, and Po all groaned.

"Oh no, Windbag," They muttered. Soon, Lee and Mei came out to see the others. On cue, Windbag came to their side to announce them.

"Everyone, the king and his boo," And that's all he said. Mei and Lee looked with wide eyes at the old duck as he went back to the group. Po and Tigress were astonished too.

"Did Windbag just call me boo?" Mei asked.

"Did Windbag just announce us under three seconds?" Lee asked. They shook their shock off as they greeted the rest of the Furious Five and Shifu. Po and Tigress also greeted them.

"So, Master Tigress, have you had a good time here?" Shifu asked.

"Yes, Master Shifu," Tigress bowed. Shifu smiled.

"I've heard about what you did in this war. And I'm very proud of you," Shifu said. Tigress's eyes widened. She smiled as she bowed again.

"Thank you, Master Shifu," She said slowly.

"It's a good thing you took out Wong-Hu when you did," Monkey said.

"Why?" Po asked.

"Because the messenger that you sent to the north of China lost the message," Monkey explained, "So there was no chance that the Northern fleet was coming." Then General Lu-Yin came out saluting Po.

"Our soldiers have recovered the remains of Wong-Hu's body. You can sleep soundly knowing he's done with," The one-eye tiger reported.

"Thank you, general. I can't thank you enough for you and your men's help," Po replied.

"We live to serve you, Master Zaber," Lu-Yin bowed and walked away. Tigress noticed someone wasn't here.

"Where's Yijiro?" She asked.

"Oh, he's at the Jade Palace protecting it," Crane answered. **(Let's stop right there. The REAL reason the prawn isn't in here is because I did NOT want another ****controversy among my readers. Just a little note. Thank you.)**

The gang went in the palace and met Tigress's family and Leo. After they had dinner, Leo noticed that Miwa was alone standing at the pond looking at the moon. "Are you okay?" Leo asked unintentionally scaring her.

"Oh! Leo don't scare me like that," She said startled.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to," Leo apologized while standing next to her. They were silent for a moment. "You look beautiful in that pink dress," He mentioned.

"Thank you," She smiled. They were silent once more. "Leo, are you still afraid of tigers?" Miwa asked.

"Not really. Of course, your grandmother is a whole different story," Leo replied. Miwa chuckled. They were quiet again.

"Do you still like me?" She asked now looking straight at him. Leo looked everywhere but at her.

"Umm of course," He stuttered, "III I like you." She smiled smugly. She moved closer to him grabbing Leo's attention.

"Are you still scared of me?" She asked with a little mischief in her eye.

"Nnnnoo," Leo said nervously. Miwa herself was getting goosebumps as she dared to get closer.

"Do I still make you nervous?" She whispered breathily looking him straight in the eyes. Leo gulped. Miwa gasped as Leo's arms quickly wrapped themselves around her waist.

"Only because I love you," He said as he kissed her. Miwa soon kissed back as she let her arms wrap around Leo's neck. Their eyes shut and their moans only being heard by each other. Soon, Miwa graced her tongue against Leo's lips. Leo opened up and their tongue were at war. Miwa noticed that Leo's tongue was rough like hers. Must be another trait of being half tiger. Soon they part, still in each other's hands as they smiled at each other.

"I love you too," Miwa whispered. Then her smiled turned serious, "But don't ever try to kill yourself like that...AGAIN," She emphasized. Leo sheepishly smiled.

* * *

"So what's the plan now?" Mei asked. The new day had dawned and the breakfast already eaten. Lee spoke up.

"Well, our brother is coming with us to Japan to just see how things have changed," Lee subtly insisted.

"Master Shifu, is it okay that I bring along Tigress with me? I know she's been wanting to go there for a long time," Po asked.

"Sure, if Tigress agrees," Shifu gestured to her. She nodded gladly. "Well, we'll see you soon, Po. Take care of yourself and Tigress." He said as they went out the door. Po grabbed Tigress's hand.

"Don't worry, I will," Po smiled. Tigress smirked as she pulled him into another kiss.

Po and Tigress, Lee and Mei went back to Japan where Po found a lot of things that had changed. But Po loved to come back with Tigress, and Tigress absolutely loved Japan. Leo stayed with Miwa and later married her. The same happened to Tigress and Po after about three years. Tigra and Qiang moved with Tigress and Tigress and Po regularly visit Miwa and Leo and Tiger. Tigress sometimes laugh at all of this. None of this would have ever happened if Po was not the legendary Zaber.

The End

* * *

**Question: To you, what has been my weirdest fanfic yet?**


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